New NOAA Web site tracks Arctic sea ice loss

A new National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration Web site provides satellite measurements of Arctic sea ice loss and examines Arctic science and policy issues, according to NOAA.

The Arctic Future site, launched March 16, is designed to inform businesses, communities and governments about how changes in the Arctic region can also influence weather in the mid-latitudes where a large part of the global human population lives, according to NOAA.

The site brings together cause-and-effect-graphics with links to the scientific literature that backs up the statements. The site also includes an explanation of global weather and climate effects from the loss of summer sea ice.

“Pulling this information together on one Web site is a way to highlight the continuing loss of Arctic sea ice in summer and its broader implications for climate,” said James Overland, an oceanographer at NOAA’s Pacific Marine Environmental Laboratory whose work appears on the new site. “For example, climate models show that changes in the Arctic can impact weather in the mid-latitudes including the United States, Europe and Asia.”